An up-to-the-minute survey of contemporary drawing featuring 115 artists from around the world, Vitamin D2 allows the reader to look at the medium in detail and study drawing's unique properties in relation to itself, to contemporary art and to the world at large.

Phaidon’s influential Vitamin series began in 2002, offering an overview of current practice in a single medium within the arts. Now in its second decade, the series continues to expand, with Vitamin D2 the second volume devoted to the medium of drawing.

Nominated by seventy-eight respected figures working internationally in contemporary art, Vitamin D2 presents the work of 115 artists who are currently emerging on the world stage, have become established since the first volume was published in 2005, or who have made a significant contribution to the medium of drawing in this time.

With the participating artists born in over ninety cities, towns and villages in more than forty countries, each artist’s entry is accompanied by a text written by one of forty-five prominent critics, journalists, academics and curators. An introductory essay by Christian Rattemeyer, Associate Curator of Drawings at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, offers an engaging overview of recent and current drawing practice.

Illustrated with over 500 images, Vitamin D2 features practices ranging from highly accomplished figurative drawing to abstract explorations of the medium, in materials including pencil, charcoal, crayon, pastel, ink, watercolour and digital drawing. Traditional techniques are matched by new approaches, often pushing the boundaries of drawing into collage, towards painting, sculpture, architecture, illustration, animation, performance and beyond. A broad range of genres, styles and subjects is evident in diverse forms, from drawings that fit in the palm of the hand to works that cover an entire courtyard.

Vitamin D2 reflects the vitality and energy of current drawing, demonstrating that artists continue to consider drawing an essential vehicle for addressing and interacting with the world today. Both a reference book for the art world and an accessible introduction for newcomers to the scene, Vitamin D2 provides an indispensable guide to drawing today.

About the author(s)

Christian Rattemeyer is the Harvey S. Shipley Miller Associate Curator of Drawings at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, where his recent exhibitions include Alighiero Boetti: Game Plan (2012), Projects 95: Runa Islam (2011), and Compass in Hand: Selections from the Judith Rothschild Foundation Contemporary Drawings Collection (2009). Rattemeyer has published numerous essays on contemporary art, as well his most recent book, Exhibiting the New Art (Afterall Books, London, 2010).

Phaidon is the premier global publisher of the creative arts with over 1,500 titles in print. We work with the world's most influential artists, chefs, writers and thinkers to produce innovative books on art, photography, design, architecture, fashion, food and travel, and illustrated books for children. Phaidon is headquartered in London and New York City. Read more